LeBron drafts Irving, Durant for NBA All-Star Game
Thanks to their All-Star picks, LeBron James will reunite with former teammate Kyrie Irving and Stephen Curry will have some serious firepower to back him up.
In the NBA’s first All-Star draft Thursday, James not only snagged Irving, who asked out of Cleveland last summer and was traded to the Boston Celtics, but also choose Curry’s teammate and reigning NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant.
Curry, meanwhile, grabbed the top two scorers in the NBA in Houston’s James Harden and Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo. Among his other picks were the remaining Warriors in the All-Star pool in Draymond Green and Klay Thompson.
The Feb. 18 game at Staples Center in Los Angeles will do away with the usual Eastern Conference vs. Western Conference format, instead pitting Team LeBron against Team Stephen.
Besides James, Irving and Durant, the rest of Team LeBron’s starting lineup consists of New Orleans teammates Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins. His reserves will consist of Cleveland teammate Kevin Love, reigning MVP Russell Westbrook of Oklahoma City, San Antonio’s LaMarcus Aldridge, Washington teammates Bradley Beal and John Wall, Indiana’s Victor Oladipo and New York’s Kristaps Porzingis.
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Curry’s starters consist of himself, Harden, Antetokounmpo, Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan and Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid. His bench will consist of Green, Thompson, Minnesota’s Jimmy Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns, Boston’s Al Horford, Toronto’s Kyle Lowry and Portland’s Damian Lillard.
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The draft was not broadcast live and neither All-Star captain would reveal who they picked first. James had the first pick of the pool of eight starters since he finished with the highest overall vote total among starters voted in by a combination of fans, players and media. Curry, who led all Western Conference players in All-Star balloting, had first pick of the 14 reserves voted in by NBA head coaches.
